Apparatus for feeding shank buttons to an attaching station



March 3, 1964 J. F. SCHNEIDER, JR

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING SHANK BUTTONS TO AN ATTACHING STATION 5 Sheets-Sheet l Filed May 3, 1960 IZZ INVENTOR.

l AT TORIVEYS March 3, 1964 J F. SCHNEIDER, JR 3,

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING SHANK BUTTONS TO AN ATTACHING STATION Filed May 5. 1960 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN V EN TOR.

AIFTORNEYS March 3, 1964 J. F. SCHNEIDER, JR 3,123,251

APPARATUS FOR FEEDING SHANK BUTTONS TO AN ATTACHING STATION Filed May 3, 1960 I5 Sheets-Sheet 3 M..L....,, L E

ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,123,251 APPARATU FOR FEEDING EBHANK BUTTQNS TO AN ATTACHHNG STATIUN John F. Schneider, lira, 78-34 64th St., Glendale, N.Y. Filed May 3, 1960, Ser. No. 26,652 8 Claims. (til. 221-156) This invention relates to apparatus for feeding buttons, and especially shank buttons to an attaching station where a sewing machine connects the buttons to a garment.

One object of the invention is to obtain a more reliable supply of buttons at the attaching station. The invention comprises a combination of a particular type of vibratory feeder a button chute leading to the attaching station. In the preferred construction the feed of the buttons along the chute is by gravity, and the final movement of the buttons to the attaching station is performed by a simple feed finger.

A more particular object of the invention is to combine a vertical vibratory parts feeder with apparatus that guides chank buttons into a gravity chute, and with a joint in the chute permitting free vibration of the upper end of the chute while the lower end thereof is fixed to a part of the but-ton attaching machine.

Still another object is to provide a simpler and more reliable apparatus for feeding the buttons at both the upper and lower ends of a button chute.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will appear or be pointed out as the description proceeds.

In the drawing, forming a part hereof, in which like reference characters indicate corresponding in all the views;

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view, partly broken away, showing a button attaching machine and apparatus for supplying buttons to an attaching station of the machine;

FIGURE 2 is a greatly enlarged, detailed view of a portion of the mechanism shown in FIGURE 1, the view being taken from the sewing machine side of the apparatus for advancing buttons at the bottom of the chute;

FIGURE 3 is a rear elevation, taken along the line 3-3 of FIGURE 2 showing the operation of the mechanism for advancing the buttons at the lower end of the chute;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged, fragmentary view of part of the button chute and a portion of the sewing machine shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged, sectional view taken on the line 5-5 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 6 :is a sectional view through the chute in the direction or" its length, the section being taken along the line 6-6 of FIGURE 4;

FIGURE 7 is a perspective View of the bowl of the apparatus for feeding buttons to the top of the chute;

FIGURE 8 is an enlarged, top plan View of the bowl, with the upper portion of the button chute shown in phantom, and also showing the fences for orienting the buttons before they are fed into the chute;

FIGURE 9 is an enlarged, fragmentary, sectional view taken on the line 99 of FIGURE 8; and

FIGURE 10 is a diagrammatic sectional view of the bowl of the button feeder and its operating mechanism.

The button attaching apparatus shown in FIGURE 1 includes a sewing machine 12 having a head 13 with a needle bar 14 at one end for operating a needle 16 used for attaching shank buttons to a garment at a button attaching station 20. The needle bar 14 is operated by conventional powenoperating mechanism used on sewing machines.

The sewing machine 12 is secured to a rigid base 22, and there is a support 24 having a flange 26 by which it is secured to the base 22, and having an upper flange 28 for supporting a button feeder 30'.

The button feeder has a base 32, preferably with rub- 3,123,25l Patented Mar. 3, 1954 her :feet by which it is supported from the flange 28. On the base there is a housing 33 for holding a motor and other actuating means for a bowl 34 at the top of the button feeder 3%. A chute 36 has its (upper end extending across the top edge of the bowl 34 into position to receive buttons which travel up a helical shoulder around the inside of the bowl 34.

The chute includes a center strip 40 (FIGURE 5) for contact with the body portion of a button 42; and the chute also includes side plates 44 and 45 which extend across the sides of the body of the button but on the side opposite to the strip 49. There is a space between the side plates 44 and 45 to provide clearance for a shank 46 of the button.

A main plate 50 of the chute supports the strip 40 directly, and supports the side plates 44 and 45 at different regions spaced along the length of these side plates 44 and 45 by means of brackets 52. The spacing of these brackets along the length of the chute 36 is best shown in FIG- URE 1.

The side plates 44 and 45 are connected with each of the brackets 52 through a connector 56 having a stud 58 that extends through the bracket 52 with nuts 61 and 62 threaded on the stud 58, on opposite sides of the bracket 52, for adjusting the position of the stud '58 to control the clearance between the side plates 44 and 45 and the strip 467. The chute is thus adjustable for buttons having body portions of different thickness and the clearance can be made small enough so that the shank of the button will always extend into the clearance between the confronting surfaces of the side plates 44 and 45, thus maintaining the button shank 46 at the proper orientation when it is about to be fed to the attaching station.

The chute 36 is made with an upper portion which is connected to the bowl 34 by a bracket 66. This upper portion extends downwardly to a joint 68, and the lower portion of the chute 36 extends from the joint 68 downwardly to the attaching station 20. This lower portion of the chute is comrected with the supporting flange 28 by a bracket 7%. At the joint 68, the upper and lower portions of the chute have relative movement with respect to one another and this leaves the upper portion of the chute free to vibrate with the bowl 334 while the lower portion is secured to the fixed part of the apparatus by the bracket 7 t).

The lower portion of the button chute 36 has a joint 74 for permitting the lower end of the chute to move up and down at the button attaching station 2% The construction of the chute at the joint 74 is shown in FIGURES 5 and 6, both of these sectional views being taken at least partly through the joint 74.

At the joint 74 there is an interruption in each of the side plates, such as the side plate 44, and the ends of this side plate 44 at opposite sides of the joint 74 are connected together by sections of flexible material, preferably metal spring material 76. There is also an interruption in the strip 49 and the portions of this strip on opposite sides of the joint 74 are connected together by a splice plate 78 rigidlyconnected to one part of the strip 40 by a screw 80, and which is pivotally connected to the other part of the strip 43 by a screw 81 extending through a slot 82.

At the extreme lower end of the chute 36 there are spring fingers 86 and 87 extending from holders 88 which are attached to the side plates 44 and 45 by screws 89. The side plates of 44 and 45 terminate short of the lower end of the button chute 36, their termination being in dicated by the reference character 91. The spring fingers 36 and 87 extend beyond the termination 91 and hold the last button against an end portion of the strip 40 while the button is being sewed on a garment by the needle 16.

The gmment to which the button is to be attached rests on a support 93, best shown in FIGURE 1, and this support is connected to a fixed portion of the sewing machine by a bracket 95 and a screw 96 extending through a slot in the bracket 95 and held in position by a nut 93 threaded on the screw 96. The bracket '95 is adjustable up and down for buttons of different diameter so as to support the garment adjacent to the shank of the button at the attaching station.

Means are provided for lifting the button chute to permit the gannet to be moved into position for attaching the next button. This means includes a frame 1%, best shown in FIGURE 4. The frame 166 is attached to a fixed part of the sewing machine by a pivot connection 162. The lower part of the button chute 36 is attached to the frame 160 by a bracket 164. The weight of the frame 160 tends to move it counter-clockwise about its pivot 102. It is moved in the other direction by a chain 168 extending downwardly from a crank arm 116'. This arm 110 is secured to a shaft 112 supported from a fixed part of the sewing machine head 13 by bearings, one of which is shown in FIGURE 4 and indicated by the reference character 114.

The shaft 112 is rotated counter-clockwise, in FIGURE 4, to pull upward on the chain 168 and to lift the discharge end of the button chute, by a pull rod 116 connected to a crank 1 18 which is secured to the end of the shaft 112 opposite to the crank 11%. This pull rod 116 goes to motion transmitting connections operated by a foot pedal under the control of the operator of the sewing machine, or to automatic controls.

At the end of each buton attaching operation, the foot pedal is operated to lift the frame 1% and this movement automatically feeds another button into position to be attached to the garment at another location along the garment. The feeding of the next button is accomplished by a feed finger 122 having its lower end extending between parts of the button chute and into contact with the body of the next button in the chute. The finger 122 swings angularly about a pivot 124, and it is made in two parts so that it can be adjusted in length for buttons of different diameter. The two parts of the finger 122 are connected together by screws 126 extending through a slot in one portion of the finger and threading into the other portion. The pivot 124 is a stud which oscillates in a bearing 1% (FIGURE 2) rigidly attached to a fixed portion of the sewing machine head 13. The finger 122 is secured to the pivot 124 so that the finger and pivot oscillate as a unit.

At the other end of the bearing 13%), there is a cam 134 secured to the pivot 124- for oscillation as a unit with the pivot 124. Thus the cam 134 and the finger 122 move together as a unit about the axis of the pivot 124.

FIGURE 3 is an end view of the construction shown in FIGURE 2. The cam 134 is urged to rock clockwise about the pivot 124 by a spring 136 attached at one end to a stud 138 on the cam 134, and attached at its other end to a stud 146 on the frame 100. Clockwise movement of the cam 134; is limited by a screw 14-2 which threads through a flange 144 of the cam 134. This screw 142 contacts with a plate 146 attached to the sewing machine head 13. The screw 142 is turned into the position which will stop the cam 134 and the finger 122 in the proper position for the particular diameter of button being operated upon. The screw 142 is then held in adjusted position by a lock nut 148 on the screw 14 2.

A roller 152 is carried by a downwardly extending portion 154 of the frame 166. This roller 152 moves upwardly, when the frame 106 is moved into the dotted line position shown in FIGURE 3 and this upward movement of the roller 152 displaces the cam 134 from its full line to its dotted line position shown in FIGURE 3. This angular movement imparted to the cam 134, causes a similar swinging movement of the finger 122 and advances the button ahead of the finger into position at the attaching station. It will be evident that FIGURE 3 is a view looking at the cam 134 from the opposite side than in 4 FIGURE 4 and the finger 122 moves to the right in FIG- URE 3 on its feed stroke, whereas in FIGURE 4 the finger 122 moves to the left during its feed stroke.

After the garment has been moved into position to attach the next button, the frame is again lowered into its full line position (FIGURE 3) and as the roller 152 moves away from the cam 134, the spring 136 pulls the cam 134 back to its full line position and causes a similar movement of the finger 122. The length of the finger is adjusted so that durnig this return movement it passes across the top of the next button in the chute and into position to thrust the next button into position at the attaching station. The buttons are advanced under the finger 122, when the lower end of the button chute is in its depressed position, by the weight of the other buttons in the chute urged downwardly along the chute by gravity, but the spring fingers at the end of the button chute prevent the force of gravity from advancing the buttons all the way to the attaching station without the aid of the feed fingers 122. By adjusting the length of the finger 122 and the position of the roller 152, which is adjustable with respect to the frame 166, the feed finger can be made to stop in whatever position is necessary for feeding buttons of any particular diameter into position at the attaching station. If the machine is used for buttons of very different diameter, and beyond the range of adjustment of the operating parts, a different cam 134 and/ or a different finger 122 can be substituted in order to obtain the proper feed for the new size of button. However the apparatus shown will operate, with proper adjustment, for buttons over a considerable range of diameters.

FIGURE 7 shows the bowl 34 at the top of the button feeder 36. This bowl has a side wall 166 with a shoulder 162 extending inwardly from the side wall along a spiral and helical path. The bowl '54 is vibrated in such a way as to cause the buttons 165 to move around the bowl in a counter-clockwise direction; and in doing so they travel upwardly along the inclined and spirally extending shoulder 162. The surface of the shoulder 162, on which the buttons 165 rest, has a slight downward slope toward the wall of the bowl, and this causes the buttons 165 to move radially outward and into contact with the wall of the bowl where it meets the shoulder 162.

Thus the buttons 165 travel along the corner where the wall of the bowl has its juncture with the various levels of the shoulder 162 and this brings the buttons to the top of the bowl, travelling in the direction indicated by the arrows 167 in FIGURE 8.

In order to orient the shanks of the buttons 165 so that they are in position to enter the button chute 36, a fence 176 is provided along a portion of the shoulder 162 near the top of the bowl. This fence 170 is made of thin materal, preferably light gauge metal, which is of less thickness than the radial distance from the button shank to the circumference to the body of the button, at the location where this distance is at a minimum. The fence 176 is supported by a bracket 174 with the lower edge of the fence 1'7 0 spaced above the surface of the shoulder 162 by a distance greater than the thickness of the main body of the button 165, as clearly shown in FIGURE 9. The fence 176, therefore, does not directly interfere with the movement of the button along the shoulder 162 with the circumference of the button in contact with the wall of the bowl. However, the fence 170 extends inwardly away from the wall of the bowl, as clearly shown in FIG- URE 8, and the eventual distance between the fence 170 and the wall of the bowl is greater than the radial distance from the side of the button shank to the circumference of the button. This causes the shank of each button to come into contact with the fence 170 and for the flat sides of the shanks to travel along the fence as the bu tons continue to move counter-clockwise in FIGURE 8 and upwardly along the sloping shoulder 162.

After reaching the desired clearance from the wall of the bowl, the fence 176 then continues with a curved portion substantially concentric with the side wall of the bowl; and there is a second fence 178 attached to and supported from the first fence 170 by bolts 180. This second fence 178 is also spaced above the shoulder 162 so as not to touch the main body of the button, as shown in FIGURE 9, and the clearance between the fences 170 and 17 8 is slightly greater than the thickness of a button shank but not sufficient to permit a button to turn after its shank is located between the fences 170 and 178. At the beginning of the second fence 178 there is a portion of this second fence, indicated by the reference character 182, which converges toward the fence 170 in the direction in which the buttons travel so as to provide a flaring entrance for the shanks of the buttons into the space between the fences 170 and 178. The fences extend to the entrance at the upper end of the button chute 36, as shown in FIGURE 8.

FIGURE 10 shows the apparatus for vibrating the bowl 34. This apparatus is a well-known operating mechanism for vibrating parts feeders. The bowl 34 is supported by four leaf springs 19% attached to the bowl at 90 intervals. The lower ends of these springs 1% are attached to a base 192 of the operating mechanism. A magnet 194 is centrally located under the bowl 34. There is an armature 1% attached to the bowl 34 with a small air gap between the armature and the pole face of the magnet 194.

Alternating current is supplied to the magnet 194 through a rectifier and the variation in magnetism causes the armature 196 to be vibrated with the springs 190 operating in one direction and the alternating pull of the magnet operating in the other direction. This sets up a differential vibration of the bowl 34 as a helical oscillation about a center axis and causes the movement of the buttons in one direction around the center of rotation.

A friction force is applied to the buttons by their contact with the oscillating bottom surface of the bowl 34, including the surfaces of the inclined spiral shoulder 162. This force urges the buttons 165 to move toward the button chute but it is a force which does not apply any positive pressure to the buttons such as can break a button or cause any jamming of the buttons. Thus the m1ld friction force applied through the bowl 34 to the buttons moves them upwardly to the top of the bowl and then along the space between the fences 1'70 and 178 so that buttons are supplied to the button chute in the proper orientation and at a rate faster than the buttons are used at the attaching station. When the chute is completely full of buttons and the space between the fences 170 and 178 is also full of buttons, continued operation of the feeder does no harm since buttons which cannot enter the space between the fences merely remain on the shoulder 162 and the feeding force of the vibrating bowl mere- 1y causes slippage between the buttons and the surfaces of the bowl on which the buttons rest.

The operation of the button feeder is controlled by a switch 200 (FIGURE 1) in the circuit of the motor that vibrates the bowl 34,. A rheostat for controlling the power supply to the motor is adjusted by a knob 202. The rheostat is enclosed in a housing 204 attached to the support 24.

The preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and described, but changes and modifications can be made, and some features can be used in different combinations without departing from the invention as defined in the claims.

What is claimed is: 1. Apparatus for supplying shank buttons to an attaching station of a sewing machine, including (A) a bowl for holding a plurality of shank buttons,

(B) a generally spiral shoulder leading upwardly from the bottom of the bowl along the inside Wall of the bowl and to a location near the top of the bowl,

(C) the shoulder having a transverse downward inclination toward the wall so that buttons that travel 6 along the shoulder tend to slide into contact with the wall,

(D) a fence extending progressively outward from the wall along a substantial length of the shoulder and at an elevation above the shoulder that clears the main body of each button but that contacts with the shank of each button,

(E) said fence extending from the wall by progressively greater distances that eventually move the entire button away from the wall with the button shank held in contact with the fence by the traverse slope of the shoulder,

(F) supporting means for the bowl and on which the bowl is movable about a generally central axis,

(G) mechanism for imparting differential vibration to the bowl to cause the buttons to move upwardly along the spiral shoulder,

(H) a button chute near the top of the bowl and into which the buttons enter at the end of the chute,

(I) the button chute having a guideway therein with a slot that receives the shanks of the buttons and that maintains them in the orientation imparted to them by said fence, and

(J a second fence on that side of the buttons opposite the first fence and extending along only the portion of the first fence which is nearer to the guideway and constituting with the first fence a confinement for steering buttons into the entrance to the chute guideway.

2. In an apparatus for supplying buttons to a fixed support at a button attaching station, the buttons having shanks with thread-receiving openings therein, the width of the shanks being smallest in the direction in which the openings extend, and said apparatus including a chute having a guideway for the buttons, a discharge end of the guideway for location at the attaching station, the guideway extending upwardly from the discharge end and having confronting surfaces forming an open slot into which the shanks of the buttons extend, a bowl at the upper end of the guideway for holding a supply of buttons, the improvement which comprises (A) a side wall of the bowl with a shoulder projecting from the inside of the wall and leading upward along a generally spiral course to a top part of the bowl,

(B) a fence extending along a substantial length of the upper end portion of the generally spiral shoulder,

(C) the fence having a lower edge portion that is spaced above the shoulder by a clearance greater than the thickness of the main body of a button that travels along the shoulder but less than the height of the shank of the button so that the fence contacts with the shank of each button and the main body of each button extends under the lower edge portion of the fence,

(D) said fence being on the side of the buttons between the buttons and the side wall of the bowl and extending from a location close to the wall of the bowl and progressively inward away from the wall along a substantial length of the shoulder and for a distance materially greater than the maximum distance from the circumference of each button to the part of the shank furthest from the button circumference so that each button is moved away from the wall by pressure of the fence against the shank and all the buttons are similarly oriented by passage along the fence,

(E) said fence extending to the entrance of the chute guideway, the confronting surfaces of said entrance constituting the opposite sides of said guideway and forming the slot thereof with said slot at the top of the guideway, and the guideway being curved to a warped contour that shifts the slot from the top of the guideway at the bowl end thereof and to the side of the guideway at the attaching station end thereof,

' (F) a vibrator attached to the bowl for imparting movement to buttons in the bowl along the generally spiral shoulder, and

(G) a resilient mounting by which the bowl is supported from a fixed support.

3. The apparatus described in claim 2 and in which the vibrator includes a magnetic actuator that imparts helical oscillation to the bowl.

4. The apparatus described in claim 3 and in which the bowl is supported on spring means by connections that yield in helical directions, and the force applied by the magnetic actuator is a vertical force along an axis of the helical direction of movement of said connections.

5. The apparatus described in claim 2 and in which the chute has a flexible joint therein dividing the chute into two portions, the lower of which is adapted to be connected with apparatus at the attaching station, and the upper of which is movable with respect to the lower portion and connected to the bowl, whereby the upper end of the chute is free to vibrate with the bowl.

6. The apparatus described in claim 2 and in which the shoulder is of substantial arcuate length and with a slight downward slope toward the outside of the shoulder where it meets the wall.

7. The apparatus described in claim 2 and in which there is a second fence with a clearance above the shoulder and extending along at least the latter part of the length of the first fence and spaced from the first fence by a distance less than the length of a shank but greater than the width of a shank.

8. The apparatus described in claim 7 and in which the spacing between the fences is greater at the beginning of the second fence and the fences converge toward one 8 another for a distance to provide a wide but contracting entrance for buttons into the space between the fences.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 386,856 Thayer July 31, 1888 690,329 Thomson Dec. 31, 1901 1,063,885 Kiewicz June 3, 1913 1,238,587 Smith Aug. 28, 1917 1,599,146 Ross Sept. 7, 1926 1,903,269 Ross et al. Mar. 28, 1933 2,382,863 Decker et al. Aug. 14, 1945 2,487,352 McDaniel Nov. 8, 1949 2,554,788 Merchant May 29, 1951 2,597,912 Troll May 27, 1952 2,747,185 Effgen May 29, 1956 2,768,594 Troll Oct. 30, 1956 2,799,383 Spurlin July 16, 1957 2,815,148 Day et al. Dec. 3, 1957 2,826,885 Henderson et al Mar. 18, 1958 2,830,549 Troll Apr. 15, 1958 2,858,930 Aidlin Nov. 4, 1958 2,872,019 Owen Feb. 3, 1959 2,918,885 Broderson Dec. 29, 1959 2,947,401 Schuricht et al Aug. 2, 1960 2,988,247 Garrett June 13, 1961 3,008,607 Troll Nov. 14, 1961 FOREIGN PATENTS 3,534 Great Britain Feb. 17, 1893 58,433 Netherlands Sept. 17, 1946 1,043,046 Germany Nov. 6, 1958 

1. APPARATUS FOR SUPPLYING SHANK BUTTONS TO AN ATTACHING STATION OF A SEWING MACHINE, INCLUDING (A) A BOWL FOR HOLDING A PLURALITY OF SHANK BUTTONS, (B) A GENERALLY SPIRAL SHOULDER LEADING UPWARDLY FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE BOWL ALONG THE INSIDE WALL OF THE BOWL AND TO A LOCATION NEAR THE TOP OF THE BOWL, (C) THE SHOULDER HAVING A TRANSVERSE DOWNWARD INCLINATION TOWARD THE WALL SO THAT BUTTONS THAT TRAVEL ALONG THE SHOULDER TEND TO SLIDE INTO CONTACT WITH THE WALL, (D) A FENCE EXTENDING PROGRESSIVELY OUTWARD FROM THE WALL ALONG A SUBSTANTIAL LENGTH OF THE SHOULDER AND AT AN ELEVATION ABOVE THE SHOULDER THAT CLEARS THE MAIN BODY OF EACH BUTTON BUT THAT CONTACTS WITH THE SHANK OF EACH BUTTON, (E) SAID FENCE EXTENDING FROM THE WALL BY PROGRESSIVELY GREATER DISTANCES THAT EVENTUALLY MOVE THE ENTIRE BUTTON AWAY FROM THE WALL WITH THE BUTTON SHANK HELD IN CONTACT WITH THE FENCE BY THE TRAVERSE SLOPE OF THE SHOULDER, (F) SUPPORTING MEANS FOR THE BOWL AND ON WHICH THE BOWL IS MOVABLE ABOUT A GENERALLY CENTRAL AXIS, (G) MECHANISM FOR IMPARTING DIFFERENTIAL VIBRATION TO THE BOWL TO CAUSE THE BUTTONS TO MOVE UPWARDLY ALONG THE SPIRAL SHOULDER, (H) A BUTTON CHUTE NEAR THE TOP OF THE BOWL AND INTO WHICH THE BUTTONS ENTER AT THE END OF THE CHUTE, (I) THE BUTTON CHUTE HAVING A GUIDEWAY THEREIN WITH A SLOT THAT RECEIVES THE SHANKS OF THE BUTTONS AND THAT MAINTAINS THEM IN THE ORIENTATION IMPARTED TO THEM BY SAID FENCE, AND (J) A SECOND FENCE ON THAT SIDE OF THE BUTTONS OPPOSITE THE FIRST FENCE AND EXTENDING ALONG ONLY THE PORTION OF THE FIRST FENCE WHICH IS NEARER TO THE GUIDWAY AND CONSTITUTING WITH THE FIRST FENCE A CONFINEMENT FOR STEERING BUTTONS INTO THE ENTRANCE TO THE CHUTE GUIDEWAY. 